Centralia

Pennsylvania invented the American company town — coal patches and oil booms that burned bright and short.

Centralia (, sen-TRAY-li-ə) is a borough and near-ghost town in Columbia County, Pennsylvania, United States, part of Northeastern Pennsylvania. Its population declined from 1,000 in 1980 to five residents in 2020 because of a coal mine fire burning beneath the borough since 1962. Centralia, part of the Bloomsburg–Berwick metropolitan area, is the least-populated municipality in Pennsylvania. It is completely surrounded by Conyngham Township. All real estate in the borough was claimed under eminent domain in 1992 and condemned by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

Centralia has been demolished or cleared — the structures are gone, though the story remains. Visit for the marker, the cemetery, or the view across an empty field, and pair it with a nearby town that still stands.

Access here is restricted, so confirm the current rules with the managing agency or landowner before you go. Showing up unannounced is the fastest way to get turned away.

Contact the managing agency or landowner first to learn the current access rules for Centralia. The mapped point for Centralia is roughly 40.8000, -76.3400 — use it as a starting point and cross-reference a current topographic map before leaving pavement.

Ghost-town etiquette is simple: take only photographs. Removing artifacts is illegal on public lands and disrespectful everywhere else — and on federal land it can be a serious offense.

The ground itself demands respect: open mine shafts, collapsing floors, and old wells hide in tall grass, cell service is often nonexistent, and help can be hours away. Tell someone your plans, pack more water than you think you'll need — and save the early morning or late afternoon light for your camera.

Want the full story? The Wikipedia article on "Centralia, Pennsylvania" covers Centralia in more depth — find the link in Sources below. County archives, historic newspaper collections, and the state historical society are the next stops after that: plat maps, census rolls, and old photographs fill in what a short visit can't. If you make the trip, consider sharing your photos and notes — firsthand reports are how the record of Centralia gets better.